Surprising Ways to Lower Your Diabetes Risk

Prevent this disease by making these four small changes

We all know that what we eat and how much we exercise determines our proclivity for type 2 diabetes, but did you know there are some other ways that you can lower your risk? Read on to see four unlikely links to the disease.

The bad news: A whopping 75% of Americans have some form of gum disease. Fortunately, daily brushing and flossing is an easy (and effective) way to keep your gums healthy.

2. Watch Out for Depression Research presented at the 2009 meeting of the American Diabetes Association found that people who were depressed had worse insulin resistance (a precursor to diabetes). The upside: Getting treatment for depression actually improved insulin resistance, which in turn lowers the risk of diabetes.

3. Get Your Zzz's A new study from The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism found that people fared worse on glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity tests after the amount of time they slept each night went from 8 1/2 hours to 5 1/2 hours.

4. Sprinkle on Cinnamon Studies are mixed, but cinnamon may improve blood sugar levels and in turn help ward off type 2 diabetes. Research recently published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition found that overweight or obese people with impaired fasting glucose had improved blood sugar after taking cinnamon extract capsules for 12 weeks.

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You have the power to lower your risk for diabetes. Visit WomansDay.com/Diabetes on November 9, 2010 at 1 p.m. EST for Your Anti-Diabetes Action Plan, a conversation between Woman's Day health director Amy F. Brightfield and Deneen Vojta, MD, Senior Vice President of the UnitedHealth Center for Health Reform and Modernization.

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